When we eat, the food
goes down via the food pipe through a movement known as a peristaltic movement
which is a unidirectional flow. There are various sphincters or valves are in
place so that the food can’t go in the opposite direction. But due to multiple
reasons, these valves may not work as efficiently as one would have expected
and the contents may flow back into the route that they came from. When from
the stomach, the acidic juice reflux back into the esophagus, that condition is
known as gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Cause.

The main cause of GERD
is weakening of the sphincters especially the lower esophageal sphincter. Since
this sphincter isn’t able to function properly, hence there will be reflux of
the acidic juice back int the esophagus region. The stomach has the ability to
tolerate a highly acidic medium but the esophagus isn’t equipped as such. Hence
this creates various disturbances of which heartburn is a common phenomenon.

Heartburn is simply a
burning sensation and pain in the upper abdomen region. Though this burning
sensation could radiate to different or another region. Depending upon the
severity of the condition, heartburn could be just a little bit of pain or it
could elevate to something not tolerable and which will require medical
assistance.

Symptoms.

Many symptoms of GERD
are similar to that of heart disease or other such type and hence it is very
difficult to diagnose if a person is suffering from heartburn. For example, when
a person is suffering from GERD, there’s difficulty in swallowing. But this
difficulty in swallowing could be due to various reasons also. The early
Symptoms of EsophagealCancer also show
the same symptom of difficulty in swallowing. Hence, it needs a specific
differential diagnosis to rule out any other diseases.

The Esophagus Cancer
Symptoms and Signsare also similar
to that of GERD and hence one has to carry out a different type of diagnosis
methods to ascertain that it is GERD.

Diagnosis.

Upper endoscopy is
performed to diagnose GERD. In this procedure, a flexible tube is passed
through the food pipe and thereby, various structures are examined. This
endoscopy could also reveal if there is an ulcer in the esophagus. Ulcer forms
when the wall lining the food pipe is damaged via
high acidic content. If needed, a biopsy is also done to differentiate GERD
from the other disease which may show similar symptoms.

Treatment.

For mild GERD, antacids
work perfectly but it has to be remembered that the antacid should be taken at
the event of onset of the reflux. If it is taken after significant period of
time, then the antacid fails to perform to have any effect.

H2 blockers reduce the
secretion of the acids in the stomach and hence, have the ability to prevent
the reflux though these are slow acting drugs.

Proton pump inhibitors
are also used in the treatment of GERD and they have the ability to block the
acid formation more or less and hence, could give relief to the patient.

Changing lifestyle
could also help in the treatment. Reflux MD has such diet recipes which are
beneficial for the people suffering from heartburn and GERD.